This invention relates to a new class of benzimidazole compounds characterized by the presence of a substituted olefinic moiety in the aryl ring. The new compounds have a broad spectrum of antiviral activity.
A wide variety of benzimidazoles are known in the art. Numerous 2-benzimidazole carbamates have found widespread use in the veterinary field as anthelmintic agents for ruminants; see U.S. Pat. No. 4,159,337. Several 2-amino-benzimidazoles have been disclosed to have anti-inflammatory activity; see U.S. Pat. No. 3,825,537. Considerable interest recently has focused on benzimidazoles as antiviral agents; see U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,150,028, 4,018,790 and 4,008,243. Various aryl substituted alkylidenemethyl benzimidazoles have been disclosed by Paget et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 4,118,742. The compounds of the latter reference differ from those now claimed since the reference compounds require an alkylidene grouping whereas the present compounds will not permit such grouping.